This year marks the 50th anniversary of two iconic albums in the KISS catalog and they have released two super-deluxe box sets to honor each album.
Dressed To Kill - originally released on March 19th, 1975 - and ALIVE! - originally released on September 10th, 1975 - are the two albums receiving this super-deluxe treatment. I recently purchased both and thought I would do a quick review. OK, maybe not super quick but here goes…
Both sets were supposed to be released earlier in the year, closer to their actual anniversary dates but due to KISS selling their brand to Pophouse, several projects got delayed, so we ended up getting two massive box sets released within weeks of each other.
It’s been an expensive end of the year for the Kiss Army.
DRESSED TO KILL 50th ANNIVERSARY 8 LP SUPER DELUXE
For months the Kiss Army had heard rumblings that a couple of box sets were coming in 2025 but no real timeline had been released.
Producer Eddie Kramer had been quoted in an interview that he had been mixing all the live shows that had made up the original KISS ALIVE! album but no release date for anything had been announced.
Finally on October 16th it was announced that a Dressed to Kill box set was going up for pre-order and it would be released the following week!
Wow, we went from nothing to……game on!
KISS fans were buzzing about this great news.
Sadly, that same day we got the terrible news that original Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley had passed away.
A day filled with excitement followed by sadness.
A week later the Dressed to Kill box set arrived at my doorstep and although I was still bumming about the passing of my biggest guitar hero, this box set came at the perfect time and helped me through the grieving process.
So, what’s in this thing?
A lot!
I got the 8 LP version, there is also a 5 CD version, but I am a vinyl guy, so getting the vinyl was a no brainer.
First off, you get a nice new remaster of the proper album. Bernie Grundman did the remastering, and he did a fantastic job. The production has always been clean & crisp without a lot of bells & whistles and Bernie stayed pretty true to the original sonics of the album. Overall, I think the bass sounds better and it was a bigger sound stage. Very well done.
Next, we get two albums worth of demos, outtakes and alternate mixes. This is where the gold is for me on this set.
“Mistake” is a country-tinged rocker that sounds more like The Rolling Stones than KISS. Paul takes lead vocals on this one and plays some tasty slide guitar. Gene can be heard prominently on the song’s chorus. I can see why this track was left of the album, but I love it.
We also get a cool band demo version of “Burning Up With Fever,” which would eventually make its way on to Gene Simmons’ 1978 solo album. This version features some fiery guitar solos from Ace Frehley. Ace was such an important part of the early KISS sound and this box set really drives that point home.
There’s also a cool early demo version of “Anything or My Baby,” which has always been one of my favorite songs from Dressed to Kill.
There’s a cool extendeded take of “Room Service,” an alternate mix of “Two Time,” with the acoustic guitars really pushed up in the mix, and tons of other cool alternate versions throughout.
There are multiple versions of “Rock and Roll All Night” included but all are pretty different. We get the “super-fast” version, the “party” version, early demo version and alternate mixes. Some may think it’s overkill, but I think it’s cool to hear how the song evolved.
There is also a lot of studio banter between the band members during different takes, kind of like a fly-on-the-wall experience. Pretty amazing.
Along with the two albums worth of demos, we get two full live concerts that were recorded during the Dressed to Kill tour and were part of a series of five shows that would be recorded to be cobbled together as a live album.
KISS had not been moving many records at that point, releasing three studio albums in just eighteen months and on the verge on bankruptcy. A live album was kind of a last ditch effort to break the band.
The first show included is from Detroit, Michigan at Cobo Hall recorded on May 16th, 1975. Over the years most people have thought that the bulk of ALIVE! came from the Cobo Hall show but after listening to this recording of that show, you can tell that not much of that night was used for the final version of ALIVE!.
Even though not much of this show was used for ALIVE! it’s still a great set.
One of the most interesting things about the Cobo Hall show is the band decided to open the show with “Rock Bottom” instead of the typical “Deuce.” There is no band introduction, just the opening acoustic guitar part and then the band launching into the hard-rocking part. Very cool to hear them attempt something different but they would quickly reinstate “Deuce” as their opening number.
A highlight for me is hearing “Two Timer” and “Let Me Kow” in the set, two songs that rarely got played in concert.
“Deuce” shows up close to the end of the set, which is weird to hear that late in the show, but again a nice surprise.
The second concert featured in this set is Live at RKO Orpheum Theatre, Davenport, IA - July 20, 1975.
This is the first of two shows the band played in Davenport on July 20th.
This album features a more traditional set list and some familiar stage raps.
No real rarities here, but the show has great energy and is a great listen.
These live recordings are warts & all but are a great snapshot of the band in 1975, just before they became huge.
Along with the music included in the box, there are tons of other “goodies.”
I won’t list them all, but you get a great 100-page hardcover book with loads of rare photos, interviews and extensive liner notes by the great Ken Sharp.
You also get posters, stickers, guitar picks, buttons, press kit, photos, flexi-disc, a Gene Simmons tie and so much more.
The box weighs in at about 13 pounds.
Dressed to Kill is in my top 3 all-time favorite KISS albums and I highly recommend this box set if you love Dressed to Kill as much as I do.
As I was still digesting the contents of the Dressed to Kill super-deluxe set it was announced that we would be getting the ALIVE! super-deluxe set in just a few weeks.
KISS ALIVE 50th ANNIVERSARY 8 LP SUPER DELUXE
This set was announced in early November and released on November 21st.
Inside this box we get the Bernie Grundman remastered version of ALIVE! along with two more full concerts plus a partial show and some rehearsal tracks.
The first show included in this set is the band’s second show in Davenport, IA from July 20th, 1975.
It’s interesting to hear this show when compared to the first show from Davenport. The band sounds a bit tired, and Paul is struggling with his voice. Even with its issues, it’s a great slice of KISStory that I have been enjoying it quite a bit.
KISS was working hard, and you can hear it in the grooves.
Next up we have Live In Wildwood, New Jersey – Wildwood Convention Hall – July 23, 1975.
This show is the real gem here and the show that sounds the most familiar to my ears. It is obvious that the bulk of the material used for the final version of ALIVE! came from the Wildwood, NJ show.
This disc is loaded with energy and attitude. You can tell that the Wildwood Convention Hall is a smaller venue than Cobo Hall, the crowd isn’t as loud, and you can really hear the room.
This may become my got-to version of ALIVE!
The last album in this set is called “Bonus Live” and it features five rehearsal tracks that were recorded in Davenport, Iowa on July 20th, 1975.
We get a track called “Kiss Jam”, which is just the band playing some simple blues, probably getting some levels for recording. Up next, we get an instrumental run through of “Room Service,” that sounds amazing.
One of the coolest rehearsal takes is the band running through “Strange Ways” with Gene singing lead vocals. Amazing.
The rehearsal portion wraps up with “Rock Bottom” and “Watchin’ You.”
The last part of this set is a partial show, Live in Cleveland, Ohio – Cleveland Music Hall – June 21, 1975.
Apparently, they could not locate all the tapes for this show, so they included what they could find.
The band sounds great at the Cleveland show and it sounds like some of it may have been used for the final version of ALIVE! as well.
Hopefully one day they will find the other tapes for the Cleveland show and release it in its entirety but for now it is great to have the partial show.
As with the Dressed to Kill box, this one is loaded up with “goodies.” Posters, coasters, guitar picks, hardcover book, etc……it’s all in there.
I know some people probably don’t care about all the extra stuff they throw into these box sets but I think it really adds to the experience and it really takes me back to the days when I was surprised to find stuff in my KISS albums when I would rip the shrink-wrap off.
Again, I would highly recommend this box set.
I should also mention that the band released colored vinyl versions and picture disc versions of both Dressed to Kill and ALIVE!
At this point you can only order these titles from the band’s official website Kissonline.com.
If you are just into the music, both titles are available on all the streaming services, so go check it out.
Below are a couple of videos of me unboxing both sets and there are also unboxing videos from Paul and Gene. I think my unboxing goes into a little more detail but it’s cool to see them talking about physical media and taking a trip down memory lane.
With these two box sets, we now have all the pieces that made up one of the most iconic live albums of the 1970’s, Kiss ALIVE! and it shows what a great live band KISS were during their early years. Peter Criss and Ace Frehley were on fire throughout these performances.
The bar has been raised with both of these box sets. Excited to see what they have planned next.
RIP Ace.
Scott Carr is a guitarist who plays in the Columbus, OH bands Radio Tramps and Unmasked OH! Scott is also an avid collector of vinyl records and works at Lost Weekend Records. So...if you are looking for Scott....you'll either find him in a dimly lit bar playing his guitar or in a record store digging for the holy grail.